Metal Sniper's Return
by Serial Killer Faximile
Summary: Sonic and team are captured by an old friend after Sniper's death, and they think that he will be hard to take on - especially with their strongest member on his side! Plus Mecha has returned! Will the team survive? T for language. Nic and Shadow join.
1. Back from the Grave

_**Metal Sniper's Return**_

It was only just recently when Sniper had sacrificed himself to defeat Eggman and Kludd's mind. All that was seen afterwards was a gloved hedgehog arm rising from the wreckage, claiming Sniper's belt. Let's see what happened later…

_With the Freedom Fighters…_

Metal was still sitting sadly. Skagui came beside to comfort him. "You okay?" he asked. "I'm… fine," Metal answered. "It just feels… awkward without Sniper," "I agree," Skagui agreed. "But what he did was very brave. How about we go visit Sonic?" "…Okay," Metal sighed, standing up. The two then headed over to Sonic's house.

As Skagui was about to knock on the door, a tranquilizer dart shot him in the side of his neck. Instantly, Skagui fell down to the floor unconscious. Metal stepped back quickly in shock, and then looked to see who shot him. He saw a grey hedgehog for about a millisecond, before being turned off. Sonic had heard the noise outside, so opened the door. He gasped, before he was also tranquilized.

Not long after, Tails was taking a walk with Sally. Bunnie and Antoine were with them, too. Suddenly, the same tranquilizer dart which hit Skagui and Sonic was shot into the back of Sally's neck. Next was Bunnie, then Antoine. Tails looked, and the dart hit him in the front of his neck.

Metoppy and EMMI were sitting in the Ancient Ruins together. "I've got to admit, Metoppy, you seemed to have had an amazing life back in your dimension!" EMMI admitted. "If I grew up here I would've had better," Metoppy corrected. The two then saw Nazo sitting further away in the ruins. "Hey, Nazo, what's up?" Metoppy asked, walking up to him. Nazo looked at her. "Nothing," he answered. His silver ears then perked, as he straightened. "I can hear something," he said. "I can sense something, too." Metoppy and EMMI both looked around.

Nazo then heard something step on a twig, sharply turning his head. The two girls did the same. "There is someone over there!" EMMI whispered. "Let me investigate," Metoppy replied, stepping forward; putting her arm in front of EMMI to block her from moving forwards. Metoppy slowly walked forwards, before two hands shot out from the overgrown bush and hit Metoppy on the head with a sniper rifle. Nazo and EMMI gasped, running forwards to the knocked-out Metoppy. EMMI was the next one to go down, leaving Nazo standing. He looked at the bush, and saw a pair of orange irises looking at him. "Hello, Nazo!" the voice of a young boy hissed. An amethyst Chaos Emerald was seen in the gloved palm, taking out Nazo's strength. "Arkkk!" Nazo growled in agony, passing out.

Steel Sonic was looking for Metal and the others, but couldn't find them. He then headed to the Ancient Ruins, expecting them to be there. Nobody was. "Where the hell are they?" Steel asked himself. Suddenly, a rock hit the back of his head, making a dent. He turned around, only to be switched off like Metal was.

**-Fang's Mansion-**

Fang was having a shower, while Jemima was playing the piano. She was playing _'Requiem for a Dream', _and Fang could hear her playing it. He liked hearing Jemima play piano, for she played it well and professionally. It wasn't long later when he heard his sister Nic come through the front door. _'Oh damn, not this idiot!' _he thought, drying the tuft of hair on his head with a towel. He dried himself, getting his usual clothes on and coming down to the front room.

"Why the hell are YOU here?" Fang asked. Nic turned to him. "I was spying on Eggman not long ago," she explained. "So?" Fang asked. "He was talking to a hedgehog about finding and capturing Sonic," "He'll never do it, y'know," Fang teased. "He already has, bro," Nic corrected. "Wait, another bounty hunter has managed to capture Sonic in this much time?" Jemima asked. Nic looked at her. "Not just Sonic," she continued. "Your old friend Skagui, Metal Sonic, even Nazo!" "What about the others?" Fang asked. "Everyone has been captured," Nic said, looking at him dead serious.

Jemima stood up from sitting on the piano stool. "We have to do something!" she exclaimed. "Wait, I am NOT working with her!" Fang yelled, pointing at Nic rudely. "Fang, we're gonna need all the help we can get," Jemima replied. "Nic, are you in this?" "As long as Mr 'I can do everything by myself' is in," Nic answered. Fang gritted his teeth and growled, marching up to her. Jemima blocked Fang from going any further. "Both of you stop saying nasty comments to each other!" she demanded. She then looked at Fang with eye contact. "You want to be a professional bounty hunter, but you'll get nowhere if you just carry on complaining about working with certain people!" she scolded. "Now let's just get out there and save our friends!" Fang stood silent, and then nodded. "We're taking the Marvellous Queen," he then foretold. "Come on!"

Fang got out his Marvellous Queen, sitting in the driver's seat. Jemima sat behind him, holding onto him. Nic took her Aerobike and flew ahead, while Fang trailed behind with Jemima holding onto him. "So where are we going?" Fang asked, yelling over the sound of both engines. "He went to Eggman's base!" Nic yelled back. "Once we make it there we can see who he really is!" "Wait… didn't Sniper kill Eggman?" Jemima asked. Fang didn't answer for a minute. "…Maybe it's not Eggman," he theorized. "We'll find out when we get there!"

**-Eggman's Base-**

"I see you've proven yourself worthy, hedgehog…" Eggman began. He then transformed back into he really was – Mecha Sonic. The hedgehog standing in the shadows showed a little bit of fear, his heart thumping fast as he was afraid of Mecha because of his previous encounters with him. "I've always hated Sonic…" he growled evilly. "I can see that," Mecha replied. "Why did you hate him?" "He was never there for me…" the hedgehog growled, remembering his past.

The hedgehog cocked his sniper rifle which he had found in Knothole, bowing his head slightly; looking up with his eyes only. "But those weasels are still out there," Mecha said. "You need to find them, and this time you can kill them," "What about the time-traveller?" the shadowed hedgehog asked. "When he comes here, just kill him," Mecha answered. The hedgehog smirked evilly, his grin just visible in the shadows. Mecha would have smirked as well, if he had a mouth. "Remember, kill anyone you see," he reminded. "All living things will DIE!" the hedgehog responded.

**-G.U.N Fortress-**

Shadow the Hedgehog was just leaving the building, until he caught sight of Fang, Jemima and Nic. He raised a brow, confused, and skated over to them; running by their side. Fang looked at him, not looking very pleased. "What the hell do you want, Shadow?" he asked. "I was about to ask you a similar question," Shadow replied. "Sod off, you artificial freak!" Nic snapped. Shadow looked at her. "If you're up to any illegal actions then you're under arrest by me!" he explained. "Well, we were actually off to save Sonic and friends!" Jemima corrected.

"Why would you help the enemy?" Shadow asked, still skating beside them. "Where have you been for the last few months?" Fang asked. "We're all a team now! And one of our teammates had died, and now a hedgehog bounty hunter more dangerous than us three together is on the loose!" Shadow was quiet, still skating. "What's happened to Sonic again?" he asked. "I'll tell you the whole story," Fang answered, explaining the whole tale.

**-Eggman's Base-**

"_Eh, don't let it go to waste. I love it but I hate the taste. Weight keeping me down…" _Skagui sang _'All my Life' _by the Foo Fighters. "We're gonna die…" EMMI sighed. "Unless someone comes to save us," Sonic corrected. "Like who?" EMMI asked. "Well, Fang and Jemima are still out there," Sonic replied. "And Fang's sister, and Shadow, Silver, even Scourge! We have many allies out there!" "…Scourge is an ally?" Tails asked. "Fang and Jemima weren't allies, either, buddy," Sonic answered. "Maybe he might have converted," "I highly doubt that," Sally sighed. "Well, the other ones are still out there," Sonic shrugged.

Nazo was trying to bang the glass down, but the silver bangles on his wrists, similar to Shadow's, were restraining his Chaos Energy. Nazo also couldn't remove the bangles. He then just gave up. "Nazo, forget it…" Metoppy sighed. "We're done for. There's nothing we can do," "No… There's always a way!" Nazo replied. "I agree with Nazo," Skagui agreed. "Anything is possible, as long as we all just believe in it," "_You_ can believe, but I'm not," Metoppy corrected. "All of us have to believe. If even only one of us didn't believe, then we're screwed," Skagui explained. "We're already screwed!" Metoppy yelled, walking into the corner and facing the wall, arms folded.

Metal walked up behind Metoppy, putting his hand on her shoulder. "Metoppy, wherever the future takes us, I will protect you," he assured. "But if I can't, at least we'll always be together," "You're right…" Metoppy agreed. She then turned and hugged Metal, tears streaming down her face. Metal was hugging her back, his eyes lime green. He would have cried as well, but he hoped that if she died, then he would die as well. He didn't want to have so many losses in his data.

Mecha Sonic then smugly looked at the group through the glass. Metal looked at him angrily, narrowing his now-red irises. "You're all trapped like lions," Mecha sniggered. "Doomed to die or be reprogrammed," "I'll deactivate myself before you could lay a frigging finger on me!" Metal snapped. "Learning to swear, are we?" Mecha asked, amused. "Keep learning, because I won't be offended," "You'll be fucking offended when I get out of here!" Nazo snarled. Mecha looked at him. "Funny, because I was going to get you out of there for a reason," Mecha reacted. He then got Nazo out of the cell. "Get your metal hands off me!" Nazo demanded. "You won't be saying that in a few minutes," Mecha teased. Nazo looked back at the others as he was forced away.

**-With the weasels and Shadow-**

"There! That's where they're being held captive!" Nic pointed. Fang turned his Marvellous Queen slightly to the right, heading to the base. Shadow followed, and Nic still took lead. The two Aerobikes were parked outside, hidden, as the four sneaked in through an air-vent in the metallic wall. "Follow me," Nic whispered. "I got in through here before, and I know where to go," "Whatever you say, sis," Fang sighed. Fang followed, with Jemima following him, and finally Shadow at the back.

As they were nearing the room where Nic was heading to, they heard a male scream of pain. The four stopped moving for a minute. "That's the way to go," Nic directed. "That's Nazo!" Fang informed, shocked. "Nazo screams?" Shadow asked. "Shadow, be serious!" Jemima commanded. "If Nazo is screaming, then that's very bad!"

**-Prison Room-**

"That was Nazo!" EMMI gasped. "What the hell is Mecha doing to him?" Sonic asked. "It sounds painful," Tails shuddered. "What if he does it to all of us?" Just then, they saw the air-vent banging open. Out crawled Nic, Fang, Jemima and Shadow. "There they are!" Jemima pointed, jogging over to the cell behind glass. The other three jogged along with her. "Guys! What happened?" Fang asked. "We were kayoed by some hedgehog," Sonic answered. "You mean me?" a young boy voice asked. Everyone faced in the direction the voice came from, seeing the grey hedgehog with Metal Sniper's sniper rifle in his hands, head down and eyes up, smirking evilly. Everyone was surprised, and most gasped. Nic and Shadow were the only two who didn't gasp. "That's right, Sonic; I'm back!" the hedgehog announced. Mecha Sonic then came by his side, as did Nazo, who had TRON-like cyber parts. "Sonic… it's Kludd!" Tails gasped. "And he doesn't look so happy," Sonic added.

*Author's Note*

**Wow. First chapter and already there's action! Kludd has returned, Nazo has been turned part-cyber (like in Nazo's Return on YouTube), Mecha Sonic is back and Nic and Shadow have joined! What will happen next? Find out soon!**


	2. Unknown Secrets

Kludd smirked at the team. "You thought that I was gone forever, didn't you?" he asked. His smirk then went into an angry frown. "Well, your wish for me to be gone hasn't been granted! After Metal Sniper destroyed himself, I wasn't destroyed with him, I was released!" The others remained silent, confused. Kludd chuckled evilly. "What you may have heard is wrong," he assured. "Let me tell you what really happened to me!"

"_After I died in the roboticization process, Eggman did what he could to fix me and make me the most powerful robot of them all. He did do that, of course, but I still remained against him. I fought back and refused to do what I was told, until all robots cornered me. There was nothing I could do to escape, and was shut-down. Eggman changed my parts, making my robot body a completely different robot. However, I was sealed away inside that robot, named Metal Sniper. He was upgraded to be evasive to any control, leading to his rebellion against Eggman. But inside of him I was always thinking – you never deserved to live, Sonic! You were never there when I needed you most – you were never there at all! So I used all of my strength to fight back into my rightful body and attack you for revenge. But when Sniper destroyed himself to destroy both Eggman and me, he failed. I was released from being sealed inside of him, and because my robot body was destroyed, I was reborn into my hedgehog body. Now, I am here, facing all of my ex-friends and ready to kill them one by one!"_

The team looked at each other, surprised. Now the story had come clear. Sniper was Kludd's body, not Kludd himself. Kludd was always sealed inside of him, like Iblis inside of Elise or Blaze. Now he was free and evil, stronger than ever. "Nazo, attack!" Kludd ordered. Nazo used his two hands to charge an attack, shattering the glass with the attack. Nobody got hurt badly by the first blow, but various shards of the glass were caught in the flesh of the non-metal beings. Nazo attacked Metal, managing to only knock him over. "Nazo, what are you doing?" Sonic asked, avoiding a blast from Nazo. "We're your friends!" "I have no friends!" Nazo hissed, continuing to attack Sonic. He flew into him, charging him through the wall. It wasn't so painful for Nazo, but for Sonic it was almost killing him, feeling himself smashing through steel.

Nazo finally smashed threw all metallic walls, throwing Sonic out of the building. Nazo stood at the edge of the wall's hole, watching Sonic fall. Finally, after about 30 seconds, Sonic hit ground. Skagui was seen flying up behind Nazo, ready to attack, but unfortunately Nazo's cyborg eye had already sensed him coming.

_Incoming Attack!_

When Skagui was just an inch behind him, Nazo quickly turned, and caught him. He swung him around a few times, then hammering down to the ground below. Nazo swooped down to check on his victims, knowing that they were still alive, but weak. He found Sonic on the ground, coughing and injured. He saw Nazo hover down and land, walking up to him. "Your end is nigh, hedgehog!" Nazo sneered, charging up his final attack. Sonic didn't even have strength to widen his eyes, until he saw Skagui flying up behind Nazo. Again, Nazo detected it.

Nazo ducked as Skagui went for his head, then grabbing his arm. He threw Skagui across the dirty ground, watching him skid into a rock hardly. Nazo grinned. He slowly backed away to fire a long range attack. "You've had your fun…" he said while backing away. "But playtime is over!" Just as Nazo was about to fire, his name was called. "Nazo!" The voice belonged to a female, and was distant. Nazo's expression changed to an expression of unexpectedness. He took time to turn his head, before finally turning ninety degrees.

In the distance stood a bright-blonde teenage human wearing a light blue female T-shirt and jeans with white trainers, pale skinned. Nazo did not recognise the girl, looking back at Sonic and Skagui. "You two have a few more minutes – ladies first!" he sniggered. Nazo then flew over to the girl, taking her down.

"Nazo, what are you doing?" the girl asked, getting back up. Nazo didn't answer, but continued to try and attack with his evil smile on his face. The girl gasped, with a Chaos Energy ball shot near her feet. The impact sent her flying back onto her back, making her skip a few times as she landed like a flat stone skipping on water. She landed on her front, pushing herself up weakly. She saw Nazo beside her, his arms crossed, smirking. He looked directly into the girl's hazel eyes beneath her thin eyebrows. Nazo gasped, his emotion and expression changing. "Ava?" he asked.

**-Eggman's Base-**

Metal and Kludd were wrestling each other on the ground. Metal was winning the wrestle, attempting to use his sharp claws to slice Kludd's throat. Tails and the Freedom Fighters were in a little shock, but attacked Mecha Sonic. Every now and then they would see what Metal was doing, as he was the one wrestling Kludd. Somehow, the next time they looked, Kludd was now winning the wrestle. "Foolish robot! You cannot defeat me!" Kludd growled. Metal pushed Kludd over, now on top of him and once again aiming to give him a flesh wound. "You no longer have a strong body, Klaus!" Metal snarled. Kludd's irises turned from orange to red. He threw Metal off of him and into a wall, causing him to make a large dent in the steel wall. "NEVER CALL ME THAT NAME!" he yelled.

"Dad!" Metoppy yelled, running towards Metal, who had hit ground. Before she could reach him, Mecha shot a bolt of electricity towards her. Metal would have gasped, until sensing a presence similar to his. He turned his head while on the floor, and saw Hyper Metal. Hyper put his index figure on his muzzle, signalling Metal to be quiet. Metal didn't react in anyway, only looking back over at Metoppy, who was holding her chest with her arm. Mecha came up behind the fallen Metoppy, looking at Metal. "And once again, Metal, you come to facing the loss of an important person in your data!" he taunted. Metoppy looked at Metal sadly. The other team members were being held off by Kludd, all unable to save Metoppy.

Now at the right time, Hyper jumped out from his hiding place. "What?" exclaimed Mecha. Hyper stood smugly. Kludd himself was rather pissed off. Hyper kneed Mecha hard upright, kicking him into the air and making him hit the ceiling. "Thanks, Hyper," Metoppy thanked as Hyper helped her up. Hyper stuck his thumb up. Kludd was growling. "I knew that someone was still out there!" he said. Metal got back to his feet, narrowing his eyes at Kludd. "You're finished!" he hissed at the grey hedgehog. Kludd was backed into the corner, against pretty much a whole army enclosing on him.

Kludd dropped his rifle on the ground, back against the wall. "Surrender yourself, Kludd!" Fang commanded. Kludd's face of fear became a frown. "I'll never surrender to you!" he yelled. _'Hurry up, Nazo!'_

**-Outside the Base-**

Nazo stood in surprise as he silently glared at Ava as she got to her feet. "Ava… how did you get here?" he asked her. "It took me seven years to create a device that could warp me here," Ava answered. "You're sixteen?" Nazo asked. Ava nodded. "You've probably changed more than I have," she smiled. Nazo looked at himself. "Oh my god! I am part robot!" he exclaimed. Sonic and Skagui then walked up behind him, injured, with a frown on their faces.

Ava was fairly shocked to see Sonic. "Nazo, what the hell is wrong with you?" Skagui asked. "I'd love to see you survive what happened to me!" Nazo snapped. "Can someone tell me what's going on?" Ava asked. "Hey, Nazo, who's your girlfriend?" Sonic asked, teasing. Nazo narrowed his eyes at Sonic. "Only asking," Sonic muttered.

"Sonic, we need to get back to the others!" Skagui exclaimed. "Gosh, you're right!" Sonic recalled. "Come on, let's go!" Sonic dashed off back to where he came from, managing to use his speed to run up the wall. Skagui flew behind him. Nazo watched them go, looking back at Ava. "Ava, there is a fight going on back there," he said to her. "Nazo, I'm coming with you," Ava replied. "What?" asked Nazo. "It's been seven years. I've trained and I've spent this long trying to get here," Ava explained. Nazo was in thought for a moment, and then sighed. "Just be careful," he warned, lifting her up bridal style, flying back the way he came in an aura.

**-Eggman's Base-**

"Get your hands off me!" Kludd demanded, as Sally tied his hands back with cuffs. "Kludd, calm down!" EMMI ordered. Kludd bared his teeth at both EMMI and Sally. "Let. Me. GO!" he ordered. "Kludd, you're not listening," Sally sighed. "We're only trying to help you," "Yeah, well I don't need your bloody help!" Kludd snarled. Sonic, Skagui, Nazo and Ava then turned up. "Thank goodness you all okay!" Sonic sighed with relief. Kludd narrowed his eyes at him. "Sonic!" he hissed.

Everyone held Kludd down as he struggled to try and attack Sonic. "Nazo, kill him!" he commanded. Nazo angrily glared at him. Kludd realized that Nazo had now gone back to his controlled mind, and Ava was making it seem more obvious. "Who's the girl?" Kludd asked, teasing. "Shut up, kid!" Nazo responded, pointing a finger at him and blushing. Kludd chuckled insanely. "Now you know why I hated the good!" he taunted. "I don't need friends or love like you do, Nazo!" "We're not in love!" Nazo snapped. Kludd grinned evilly. "But you like her, don't you?" he asked. "Shut up, hedgehog!" Nazo shot back. "Nazo, don't listen to him!" Ava persuaded. "I'm not!" Nazo answered. "Listen, Kludd, shut your mouth before I tear it off!" "No, Nazo!" yelled Skagui. Nazo silenced himself.

Kludd bit Sally's hand, then breaking out from the army holding him down. "Hah hah! See ya later, suckers!" he laughed, running. "He's getting away!" Tails pointed. "Let him go!" Sonic responded. "He won't get very far." Everyone watched as Kludd jumped through the hole in the wall and legged it. Mecha Sonic then got back to his feet, retreating after him. "They'll be back. Just watch," Sonic sniggered.

**-Outside the Base-**

"Idiot! You let them live!" Mecha complained, flying beside Kludd as he ran. "I was outnumbered! What did you expect from an 11 year-old?" Kludd shot back. "Well, we will eventually get them," Mecha sighed robotically. "In the meantime, you'd better think of something! Or else I'll tear you apart piece by piece!" "Understood…" Kludd gulped. "Hey, what about Nazo?" "What about him?" Mecha asked. "Can't you track him down because of his cyborg parts?" Kludd reminded. Mecha revisited the thought. "Of course!" he exclaimed. "Then they'll have nowhere to hide!"

**-Eggman's Base-**

"Nazo, are you sure you won't end up attacking us like EMMI does?" Sonic asked suspiciously. "I am absolutely sure!" Nazo finalized. "Good," Sonic smiled. "So… who's Ava?" "Just a nine year-old I met on Earth 7 years ago," Nazo answered. "After I teleported and crashed," "What happened on Earth?" Jemima asked. "I was tested by the Earth scientists, but Ava helped me," Nazo replied, embarrassed. "Can we just get off the subject?" "Yeah, good idea," agreed Sonic. "Now let's get back to Knothole!" "If we can actually find our way back," mumbled Skagui. Sonic recalled that. "Damn it!" he growled.

"Guys, just follow me," Shadow insisted. "I know the way back," "Thanks, Shad, it's always good to have you around!" Sonic thanked. So Shadow lead the team back to Knothole, the weasels also coming.

Arriving back, the gang began planning on how to defeat Kludd. "Look, guys, we have to defeat Kludd and Mecha somehow," Sonic reminded. "But we can't kill Kludd!" Skagui replied. "Skagui has a point," Fang agreed. "He was an ally for many years with you guys, and us two," "Hm… Then this will be harder than destroying robots," Sonic muffled. "If we destroy Mecha, then we'll be able to get Kludd and send him to jail!" EMMI suggested. Sonic thought. "Could work," he nodded. "Let's just get ready, first. We can't fight when we're not prepared."

*Author's Note*

**And again things tie up well for the team! Kludd and Mecha have unfortunately got away, but at least Nazo has turned back to being good! But maybe not forever… What will happen next for the team? Will they beat Kludd? Will they stop his crazy attempt at killing all living things? Or will Kludd get his way of revenge? And most importantly, will their fallen hero also rise from the grave? Find out soon!**


	3. The Cybernetic Pawn

Mecha was managing to track down Nazo on his readings. "Now we wait," he said. "For what?" Kludd asked. "For the right time to strike," Mecha answered. "And I even have a way to get Nazo back on our side!" "Couldn't you just do that anyway?" asked Kludd, confused. "Yes," Mecha replied. "I could just make his robotic half overtake him, which is what I intend to do." Mecha then sniggered a little. "But so that there aren't any pesky side-effects, then we have no choice but to trick him into thinking that he killed Ava!" "And how are we going to do that?" Kludd questioned. "Fool! _We're _going to kill her!" Mecha shouted. "Oh," Kludd nodded.

**-Knothole-**

Metal sat alone. He sat confused; he sat feeling like he had no place in the world. He sat staring into the sky with his crimson eyes. He had no idea why he felt this way, possibly from his many losses in the past. He could only protect his two friends, one being his parallel relative. With Sniper gone things were different, and the memory of a distant event still remained. For some reason he couldn't seem to get these thoughts and memories off his mind. He could then hear the voices and sounds of the past.

"_Callie, come on!"_

"_I'm coming Metal!"_

_*The sound of a gunshot is heard within the flashback.*_

"_Callie!"_

After that the voices and sounds faded. The sounds of running on a metal floor faded, as did the echo of Metal's own voice. Metal's eyes had widened when he heard the gunshot, and after hearing his voice, he snapped back to reality. His eyes turned green, and he just wanted these memories to leave him alone.

**-Ancient Ruins-**

Ava sat with EMMI and Metoppy in the most peaceful spot; the Ancient Ruins. "So, how did Nazo get those cyber parts again?" Ava asked. "We were all captured by an old friend, and Nazo was transformed into their cybernetic pawn," EMMI explained. "You mean there was someone else?" asked Ava. "Mecha Sonic," answered Metoppy. "He used Kludd to capture us," "Does Kludd know anything about being tricked?" Ava questioned. "He knows what he's getting himself into," Metoppy replied. "He's just getting revenge on Sonic for letting him down too many times. Truly he has a huge fear of Mecha Sonic, as did our old friend, Sniper."

"Who's Sniper?" Ava asked, confused. "He died…" EMMI revealed. "Oh…" Ava reacted. "Not long ago, actually," Metoppy added. "You see, he was a robot with Kludd sealed away inside of him due to some of Kludd's robot technical difficulties. Long story." Ava nodded.

Somewhere else in the ruins, Nazo felt something in the cyber part of his head. He then heard a voice, recognising it as Mecha Sonic's. "You cannot fight for long," he told him. Nazo held his head. "No! You're wrong!" he shot back. Mecha just laughed in his head, then leaving him alone. Nazo slowly removed his hands from his head. "….What if he's right?" he asked himself.

**-The Great Forest-**

Skagui was looking out for any sudden attacks. "Why me?" he mumbled, walking around. "I'm a sniper, not a defender!" Skagui continued to wander around from left to right repeatedly. He decided that nobody was going to come, so fell asleep by a tree. Unbeknownst to him, both Mecha Sonic and Kludd had arrived seconds after he drifted off. "So, we're going to find Ava and kill her, right?" Kludd repeated. "That's the reason we're here, yes," Mecha answered. Kludd nodded once, until tripping over Skagui's legs. He shook his head quickly as he got back to his feet. He snapped his head towards Skagui, giving a look as if he would murder him – which he was intending to do. He pointed his pistol at him, his gloved finger on the trigger. Mecha grabbed his wrist holding the gun.

"No, we're not here to kill the others," Mecha reminded. Kludd looked confused. "Remember, Kludd, if we show any signs that we're here, or if he survives, we will be discovered," Mecha explained. "Oh yeah…" Kludd recalled. Mecha let go of his wrist, and Kludd put his pistol back in his gun-holder. He scowled at Skagui, but continued to walk ahead to find Ava – she must have been nearby somewhere.

After a while, Skagui opened his eyes. He stretched out and yawned, standing up tiredly. He turned around, facing a bush, seeing a pair of red irises looking at him. Skagui jumped back in shock, gasping. He pointed his pistol at the bush. "D-Don't move, Kludd, or I-I'll shot!" he warned. The shadows head in the bush looked down, keeping his irises looking up. A silver metal hand then came from the bush, touching the shadowed head's muzzle, meaning "shush". Skagui lowered his gun.

**-Ancient Ruins-**

Ava had left to another part of the ruins. She was a little lost, until she thought she had found the exit. Nope, she hadn't found it. Ava sighed, frustrated. "Metoppy! EMMI! Where are you?" she called. She then heard a rustle in the bushes. Ava turned quickly. "…Metoppy?" she asked, slowly approaching the bush. "Wrong," a young boy's voice said. The same orange irises which have been seen before by others stared into her hazel irises. Out stepped Kludd with Mecha by his side. Ava gasped, taking a few steps back.

"Hello, Ava!" Mecha chuckled. "What do you want from me?" Ava asked, scared. "Only your demise!" Kludd answered. "What?" Ava gasped. Kludd grinned evilly, pointing his pistol at Ava. He pulled the trigger, a golden bullet piercing through Ava's chest. Ava gasped for breath, her eyes rolling back. Ava lost her consciousness, falling onto her backbone. Both Mecha and Kludd looked down smugly at what they had just done. "Now it's time to put the blame on Nazo," Mecha sniggered.

**-Knothole-**

Sonic saw Nazo looking worried. "Yo, Naz, what's up?" he asked, walking over to him. "He was right…" Nazo answered. "Who was right?" Sonic questioned. "Mecha Sonic…" Nazo answered. "Huh?" Sonic asked, confused. Nazo then narrowed his eyes angrily at Sonic. He punched him across the face, giving him a nosebleed. Nazo gasped, shocked. Sonic held his nose tightly, looking at Nazo. Nazo took two steps back, then turning around and running away.

**-The Great Forest-**

Nazo ran somewhere within the forest where nobody could find him. That's what he thought, at least. He looked at his robot parts, his eyes widening. "I'm the monster I was supposed to be…" he told himself. He then clenched his fists and tightened his eyes. Suddenly, he heard the sound of robot footsteps coming closer to him. Nazo opened his eyes and looked to see what it was, then narrowing his eyes angrily. "You!" he growled.

"Yes, Nazo, it's me and your old friend," Mecha Sonic responded. Kludd smirked as a reaction to the sound of 'old friend'. "Piss off, you retarded nut-jobs!" Nazo offended. Mecha shook his head slowly. "Restrain your anger and language usage, Nazo," he reminded. "Why are you here?" Nazo asked angrily, wanting to be in his own space. "To inform you of what bad behaviours you've acted out," Mecha answered.

"What 'bad behaviours'?" Nazo asked, suspicious. "All I've done after I fought back my control is punch Sonic in the face!" "Oh, really?" Mecha asked. "Then tell me, where did you last see Ava?" "In the Ancient Ruins," Nazo answered. "And what happened then?" Mecha questioned. "I left," Nazo replied. "Wrong," Mecha taunted. "You killed her!" Nazo gasped, his expression turning into shock.

"That's not true!" Nazo gasped, shaking his head. "Oh, but it is," Mecha assured. "You killed your own friend," "No…" Nazo muffled, tightening his eyes and clenching his fists. He was traumatized by the thoughts. "You're lying!" "Go and see her dead body for yourself then, if you want to see evidence," Mecha informed. "It's a lie! I didn't kill Ava!" Nazo snapped. "See for yourself!" Mecha repeated. Nazo quickly made his way to the Ancient Ruins for the evidence. It was true – there lay the dead Ava.

"No…" Nazo shuddered with horror. "NOOOOOO!"

**-Knothole-**

Sonic heard Nazo's voice echo in the distance. He rubbed his bandaged nose. "That can't be a good sign," he stated. Sonic made his way to the sound, before coming across the lonely Metal. "Hey, Mets, what's the matter?" he asked him. "Nothing," Metal answered, head down. "I heard Nazo screaming, did you?" "Yeah, I was just going to see what the scream was about," Sonic responded. "It sounded like he was yelling 'no'…"

**-Ancient Ruins-**

The two azures saw no sign of Nazo. "He isn't here," Sonic finalized. Metal then saw small droplets of blood. "Um, Sonic?" Metal asked. Sonic turned. "What is it, Metal?" Sonic responded, coming over. Metal pointed to the floor. Sonic looked. "Oh god…" he gasped. "Let's check it out!" Sonic and Metal followed the tiny drops of blood, until coming across Ava lying down. "Oh Jesus, it's Ava!" Sonic exclaimed. The two fell beside Ava, Sonic listening for her heart. "She's alive," he sighed with relief, lifting her up in his arms. "I'll get her to a doctor, you find Nazo!" With that, Sonic ran through the ruins and quickly tried to find Dr Quack.

Meanwhile, Metal was searching for Nazo. There was no trace of him. "Nazo!" he yelled. "Where the hell are you?" Metal then flew out further into the Great Forest.

**-The Great Forest-**

"He has to be here somewhere…" Metal mumbled. He then heard two laughs. Quickly, Metal hid behind a tree, pressing his back against it. "They have no chance with him back on our side!" Kludd chuckled. "Congratulations, you just stated the obvious," Mecha responded. "So… where is Nazo now?" Kludd asked. Metal widened his crimson eyes, still silent in hiding. "He's on his way to attack, you fool!" Mecha answered, snappy. "And now that the Freedom Fighters are vulnerable, we can also attack them!" The two then made their way to Knothole fast. "I've got to warn Sonic!" Metal told himself, taking a quicker route to knothole.

**-Knothole-**

Metal quickly found Sonic. "Did you find him?" Sonic asked. "Mecha Sonic and Kludd are coming to attack!" Metal warned. "And somewhere Nazo is hiding!" "Well, I know that…" Sonic muttered. "No, I mean he's hiding to attack us!" Metal repeated. "He's back with them!" "…That can't be good," Sonic gulped. "Well, if we get the gang together then we can defeat them, can't we?" "It's worth a try," Metal agreed. "Or is it?" a familiar voice asked. Metal and Sonic turned around. Metal was right – Nazo was back with Kludd and Mecha.

"Nazo, you said that you wouldn't go back with them!" Sonic yelled. "It's futile, Sonic, I'm evil!" Nazo yelled back. "You're not, Nazo! Don't listen to them!" Sonic ordered. "It's true, Sonic! I killed Ava!" Nazo revealed. "…It was _you _who attacked Ava?" Sonic asked. "I killed her! She's dead! And it's all my fault!" "Ava isn't dead!" Sonic shot back. "She's in intensive care!" Nazo froze.

"Ava's alive?" Nazo asked. "Yes, and I don't think that it was you who killed her," Sonic answered. He then snapped his finger towards Kludd. "He is the only one who would use a bullet on her!" Kludd scowled at Sonic. "I don't see why you would use a bullet with your Chaos Powers at hand, Nazo, but it was Kludd who tricked you into thinking that you killed Ava!" Sonic continued. Kludd drew out his pistol. "I've just about had enough of you, Sonic!" he yelled. Just then, a red laser shot the pistol out of Kludd's hand. Kludd looked angrily. "Sorry, Kludd, but this world isn't big enough for TWO Snipers!" Metal Sniper punned, with Skagui standing beside him.

*Author's Note*

**Woo! Sniper has returned at last! Ava isn't dead thankfully, but she's injured badly! So, what will happen now that Sniper has returned? Find out soon! In the meantime, why not check out my other fics?**


	4. Who is Who Here?

Kludd growled at Sniper. "I thought you were dead!" he hissed. "Didn't we all?" Sniper asked rhetorically. "I wasn't destroyed, and neither were you," "You still can't beat me, Sniper!" Kludd predicted. "I'm a robot with lasers, you're a hedgehog with my weapons," Sniper compared. "You mean _my _weapons!" Kludd corrected. "And in case you haven't noticed there's a robot right by my side here who could own you!" "I'm the world's strongest robot, don't underestimate me," Sniper responded. "And he's got friends!" Skagui added. Sniper nodded to his point.

Mecha Sonic pointed his machine gun at Sniper. "I will kill you, Sniper!" he warned. "So don't enrage me any further!" Sniper pointed his laser at Mecha. "Two can play at the threatening game," he joked. "This isn't a game, kid," Mecha reminded. "So don't play around," "Guys, back off," Sniper ordered. "Why?" Skagui asked. "I've always wanted to do this – now go!" "Don't do what you did last time!" Skagui commanded. Sniper looked at him. "I'm not doing that," he said. "I'm going to survive this one." Skagui nodded. "Okay guys, you heard him! Clear!" Sniper turned his attention back to Mecha and Kludd. "I suppose you don't know of my special attack," he sniggered. "I'm surprised you never used it, Kludd…" Sniper took a few steps back, then floating in the air and scrunching into a ball. "Titanium… BLAST!" he yelled. He released a similar attack to Shadow's Chaos Blast.

The two enemies were sent flying back far away into the distance. Sniper pretended to clap dust off his hands like most people do when they've done something. He then turned around to meet with the others, finding the group.

"What was that?" Sonic asked. "Titanium Blast," Sniper answered. "Is that like Chaos Blast?" Metal asked. Sniper nodded. "I thought you'd know," he said. "I did," Metal answered. "I just never saw it in action," "Is Ava okay, Sonic?" Nazo asked, worried. "She's fine, Nazo," Sonic answered. "Don't worry," "She was shot, Sonic, so she's basically dying!" Nazo corrected. Metal was listening into the conversation, upset. He remembered the human girl he once knew who was killed by a bullet to the chest. He turned around to the two. "Can you move off the subject?" he asked. The two hedgehogs looked at him. "Why, does it bother you?" Nazo asked. "I don't want to talk about it," Metal replied, turning around slightly. "I just… don't want to hear about girls getting shot."

Metal tried to let out a sigh. "…Did he know Maria?" Nazo asked, whispering. "No, he knew her cousin," Sonic answered. "She had the same fate," "Talk about curses," Nazo shuddered. "How long ago was her death?" "I don't know much, but my guess is around ten years ago," Sonic answered. "It was fifteen years ago, actually," Metal corrected. Nazo and Sonic said nothing. "Yes, I heard the whole conversation," Metal explained, walking away.

**-Ancient Ruins-**

Sniper, Skagui and the other robots – except Metal – were now relaxing. While Kludd and Mecha were recovering from Sniper's attack, it was worth a bit of a break. Although, our young and spirited robot hero was getting extremely bored. He let out a childish sigh. "Anyone got an interesting conversation?" he asked. "Yes, I heard that Nazo has gone to visit Ava in hospital," Skagui replied. "Wasn't that a bit obvious?" Sniper asked. "He was crying, you know," Metoppy added. "I heard him talking to Ava and crying for her."

_**-The Conversation between Nazo and Ava-**_

Nazo was left in the room with the critically injured Ava. Ava opened her eyes feebly, looking up at Nazo. "Na…zo…" she groaned. "What's… happened?" "You haven't missed anything, don't worry," Nazo assured. "And I promise you that everything is going to be okay." Ava took hold of Nazo's hand weakly. "It was… Kludd…" she said. "I know it was," Nazo replied. "He tried to kill you to make it seem as if I had done it to get me back to his side." A tear went down Nazo's eye. "But you're going to be fine!" "If anything happens… don't take it the wrong way…" Ava ordered. "I'll try not to, Ava…" Nazo promised, until he just began crying. He tightly held Ava's hand. "Just… try to hold on, okay?" "I'll try…" Ava responded. Nazo continued to cry, kneeling beside Ava's bed and deciding not to leave her side.

**-Ancient Ruins-**

"I never knew that Nazo cared that much for a girl," EMMI pinioned. "I didn't think he cared much about anyone, to be honest," Skagui admitted. "I didn't think that Metal had emotions and that he cared about anyone, but he cared for me," Sniper added. "Before you were created, there was also me, Steel and-" EMMI stopped. "We know who you're about to say," Skagui said. "But I doubt we'll ever know about her. Much," "You already know what you need to know," EMMI corrected. "She died with a shot to the chest. End of story," "But why didn't she survive the bullet?" Skagui questioned. "It remains a mystery," EMMI replied. "She should have survived due to the robot abilities Metal gave her, but she didn't," "Strange," Skagui uttered.

**-Knothole-**

Metal sat up in a tree. There was nothing else for him to do. He wasn't in the mood for speaking to anyone. Thanks to Nazo he was now being haunted by a distant event of his tragic past. And now that everyone had been reminded of it, they were wondering about how she died, and those who never really knew her wanted to know more about her. Even EMMI and Steel wouldn't explain – despite Steel being dead before Callie – which was pretty fair, in a way. "You're not alone," a deep yet quiet voice assured. Metal turned suddenly, seeing Shadow sat beside him with his eyes closed.

"What do you mean?" Metal questioned. "You lost a twelve year-old which you were supposed to protect," Shadow replied. "…How did you know?" Metal asked, surprised. "You know my past, don't you?" Shadow asked. "Yes, Maria was her cousin," Metal answered. "A distant cousin," "And you gave her the name that Maria was going to be called?" Shadow asked. "It was the only unused name I knew," Metal responded. "But I never knew that you knew about her and me," "I know everything," Shadow corrected. "And I also know that she found out about Maria," "What, were you spying on her?" questioned Metal. "No, do you remember her telling you that she saw Maria's ghost?" Shadow asked. Metal tried to think. "Well, Maria revisited me and told me everything," "Lucky," Metal sighed. "If only Callie would come back to me."

**-Somewhere Else in Knothole-**

Fang, Nic and Jemima were practising shooting. Unfortunately Jemima had to watch her boyfriend and her friend fight each other. "Just because you're a boy and older than me it doesn't mean that you're better than me!" Nic snapped, nose-to-nose with Fang. "You're just jealous because I have talent, and you don't!" Fang countered. "Guys, guys, just stop," Jemima ordered. "He started it!" Nic replied, pointing at Fang. "She started it!" Fang said at the exact same time, pointing at Nic. "I don't care who started it, I'm finishing it!" Jemima clarified. "Now just stop fighting! Someone has to lose this round of shooting birds, and someone's gotta win!" Nic and Fang grunted, going back to the shooting. They scowled at each other. "Bitch!" Fang hissed quietly. "Bastard!" Nic responded.

**-Eggman's Ground Base-**

"Are you sure the idea's going to work?" Kludd asked. "Once you have Sniper's belt and weapons and have him captured or deactivated, then all you need to do is act like him and eventually attack the Freedom Fighters," Mecha replied. "But how will I get Sniper without them noticing?" asked Kludd. "When he's alone," Mecha answered. "You should already know that." Kludd, nervous, stepped inside of a robotocizer. He tried his best not to look scared or worried, as he was transformed from a hedgehog into a robot. After the process was complete, he stepped out and looked at himself. "Now, you know what to do, don't you?" Mecha asked. "Yes," Kludd answered, nodding once. He then flew out of the base and to the Ancient Ruins.

**-Ancient Ruins-**

Sniper and Skagui were fighting over who the best sniper was. "It's clearly me, as my name is Metal Sniper the Hedgehog!" Sniper confirmed. "And people call me Headhunter and Skagui the Sniper!" Skagui argued. "Ah, but that's not your birth-name, is it?" Sniper asked. "It's your nickname!" "Says you, Metal Sniper originated from your counterpart's nickname!" Skagui insulted. "How dare you!" Sniper growled. "You two are fighting like immature little kids," EMMI pointed out. "That's because we _are_ immature little kids!" Sniper corrected. EMMI and Metoppy both sighed, Metoppy rolling her eyes.

"He has to be here somewhere…" Kludd mumbled to himself, looking around. "Hey, being programmed still counts!" Sniper's voice yelled childishly. If Kludd was allowed to have kept his mouth he would have smirked. "Found him," he muffled with a high pitched voice. Kludd then began making his way over, until realising that he was talking to somebody. "Damn, he must have friends with him!" he growled to himself. "Ah well, I'll just wait for them to go and he'll be as good as dead!"

Kludd waited for about fifteen minutes until his rival finally was finally leaving. He followed them secretly and silently, until Sniper had now departed from the robots and Skagui, now alone by himself. He was searching for his brother, Metal. "Metal!" he yelled, seeing no sign of him. He asked the locals if they had seen him, but they all replied that they didn't know. Sniper presumed that he must have been in the Great Forest. "Metal, I know you're here, now show yourself!" he called. Suddenly, he heard a rustle in one of the trees behind him. Sniper quickly turned. "…Okay, I know that's you, Metal, now come on!" he commanded. There was nothing in response.

Sniper continued to stare at the tree, until a robot exactly like him pounced out of it and onto him. Sniper rolled over so that he was the one wrestling the robot down. "Who the hell are you?" he asked angrily. The robot laughed. "Who you were before I was sealed inside of you!" he answered. Sniper's eyes widened. "…Kludd?" he asked. "You little piece of shit!" "Say that to yourself for copying me!" Kludd countered. "Me? What about you?" Sniper snapped. Kludd punched Sniper in the face to get him away. He then stood up and walked over to Sniper. Quickly, Sniper regained his balance and made a run for it. He didn't use his booster, as it wasn't a common thing for him to use. Kludd sniggered, catching up by using his booster.

Kludd caught up with Sniper easily, getting him in a headlock. Sniper was surprised that Kludd had equally matched strength as him. "You really need to get the confidence in using that booster," Kludd taunted. "Although, you may never get the opportunity to, anyway." Sniper struggled to get out of the headlock, wrestling hard. "Now hold still like a good boy…" Kludd commanded, pointing a syringe to Sniper's neck and injecting him. Sniper lost consciousness. Kludd, again, would have smirked. He picked Sniper up and flew him back to the base.

**-Knothole-**

Metal and Shadow had now come down from the tree. "Hey Sonic, have you seen Sniper?" Metal asked. "He was looking for you, and then he wandered off," Sonic replied, shrugging. "I know he was, I heard him calling my name," Metal responded. "I'll just track him down." Metal attempted to track Sniper down, until seeing that he had left the Great Forest. "Why would he leave?" Metal asked himself. "What?" Sonic asked. Metal looked at him directly. "He's left the Great Forest," he repeated. "And he's moving at his fastest speed… which isn't like him," "If he doesn't come back in the next hour, then we'll go after him," Sonic planned.

_1 Hour Later…_

"…He's not back yet," Sonic sighed. "Let's go!" "Hey, guys!" a familiar voice said. Sonic was shocked for a little. "Sniper, you're back!" he praised. "I'm like a boomerang," Sniper joked. "I always come back," "Not always," Metal corrected. "…Well, mostly, then," Sniper perfected. "Well, I'm off to the Ancient Ruins." As Sniper began to walk away, Metal stopped him. "Wait, Sniper! Why were you looking for me earlier?" he asked. Sniper didn't know why. "…I was wondering where you were, that's all," he answered. He then began walking again. _'I smell a rat…' _Metal thought.

**-Eggman's Ground Base-**

"Urgh…" Sniper groaned. "Shit, I feel stupid!" "And so you should," an all-too familiar voice added. Sniper looked around cautiously. "Shit…" he attempted to gasp. "N-N-Not you!" "Sorry, Sniper, but it is me!" Mecha Sonic replied. Sniper tried to move, but couldn't. "What do you want with me?" he asked. "Kludd thought that you needed a break, so he's taking your place for now," Mecha answered. "NO!" Sniper yelled, straining. "You'll be staying here for a while, my friend," Mecha continued. "But you will never see the light of day again!" "Two words: Fuck. You," Sniper growled.


	5. World's Strongest Robot

In Knothole, Metal was very suspicious. There was something different about Sniper. Why was he using his booster all of a sudden? And why would he just randomly go to the Ancient Ruins? Something wasn't right.

**-Ancient Ruins-**

Sniper, in other words Kludd, was sitting in the Ancient Ruins by himself. "I would always come here as a kid," he remembered. "Though I still am a kid now." Kludd clenched his fists. "And they all still let me down!" After growling angrily, he then laughed evilly.

**-With Ava and Nazo-**

Nazo was still beside Ava, not wanting to leave her. She was his closest friend, and he cared for her dearly. He then looked at his hand. _'Wait… I can heal myself, can't I?' _he thought. _'Maybe I can heal her if I transfer my powers to her.' _Nazo placed his hand on Ava's injury, and tried as hard as he could to transfer his powers. It worked. Ava opened her eyes slowly, blinking a few times. "…Nazo?" she asked. "Why do I feel… different?" "I healed you, Ava," Nazo answered. "But now you also have Chaos powers like mine." Ava sat herself up, then getting off the bed. "So I haven't missed anything?" she asked. "Nothing important," Nazo responded. "Come on, let's go."

**-With Metal-**

Metal watched Kludd carefully. He wanted to see what was going on. Something was definitely up here. He watched his 'brother' vigilantly. "I think I'll start off by destroying that robot, Metal!" Kludd planned. Metal bleeped in annoyance. Kludd looked, but Metal had just managed to hide behind one of the ruined walls. Kludd began making his way slowly over to the wall, looking behind it. Metal quickly punched him in the face. "You!" Kludd hissed. "Where is Metal Sniper?" Metal demanded. "I'm not telling you anything!" Kludd snapped. Metal pinned him down. "Tell me!" he repeated. Kludd was quiet for two seconds, until punching Metal off him.

Kludd kicked Metal once while he was down. "You need to decide when to visit the scrapheap," he taunted. "You're just an old robot, unable to fight!" Metal got back to his feet. "Never. Call me. An. Old. ROBOT!" he hissed, charging at Kludd and knocking him down. He then began charging the laser up in his chest. "You were gone once, and this time I'll make sure you're gone for good!" Kludd sniggered a little. "Destroying me will only make your task longer to find your dear brother," he taunted. "Either way, though, Sniper is going to die!" Metal fired his attack. Kludd flew out of the way. "Unlike your brother, I use my booster!" he snickered. He then flew back down and grabbed Metal. "I'll let you live for now," he began. "But we can't have you telling the others that I'm actually Kludd in disguise, can we?" Kludd switched Metal off, then flying back to his hideout, where Mecha Sonic and Sniper were.

**-Eggman's Ground Base-**

"So, Sniper, now that you're here, I can do the next part of my plan," Mecha Sonic explained. "Oh, no you can't!" Sniper growled, breaking from the ropes around the chair. "You need to remember one thing, Mecha; I'm the strongest robot in the world!" Sniper levitated and scrunched into a ball, ready to do his attack once again. Before he could, Mecha took him down by tackling him. "Not going to work this time, sunshine!" he provoked. Sniper was struggling to break from Mecha's grasp while he was held down. Mecha noticed this. "Perhaps you didn't realise that I copied your strength so that I could take you down easily!" he reminded. Sniper hissed at him.

Mecha Sonic forced Sniper inside a robotocizer. "What's your big idea now, then?" Sniper asked. "If I derobotocize you, then your friends will mistake you for Kludd!" "No, they won't!" Sniper snarled. He smashed his fist against the glass, but it hurt. The force he had put into his arm almost broke his knuckles.

…Knuckles?

Sniper looked at his hands, gasping. He was a hedgehog. Mecha Sonic laughed. "Yes, Sniper. You're now a weak little hedgehog, and you can feel pain!" he tormented. Sniper looked at his older robot brother with anger. He began kicking at the glass, until shattering it. Sniper ran into Mecha and jumped, ready to punch him in the face. Mecha grabbed his fist and began crushing it, twisting it at the same time. A horrible sound came from Sniper's mouth. He made the sound even more as the pain in his wrist grew. He was screaming.

Meanwhile, Metal Sonic had already managed to wake himself up when being marched inside the base. He heard the screaming, then kicked Kludd in the chest, then throwing him straight onto the floor. He stomped on the back of his head hard, smashing it a little. Metal ran ahead to find who was screaming.

Metal found a hedgehog looking just like Kludd wearing no belt, holding his wrist. Mecha was standing right before him. "Maybe letting you go will be a bad idea…" Mecha altered. "After all, you'll either run away or convince them that you're Metal Sniper. I'll just use this moment to kill you." Sniper gulped in fear. Metal flew towards Mecha and pushed him over, repeatedly punching his face. "Never-Touch-My brother-AGAIN!" he commanded as he punched. Mecha Sonic jumped up and threw Metal across the room. Metal smashed into the wall. "I have your brother's strength now," he repeated. "You cannot defeat me!" Kludd then entered the room smugly.

Kludd gave Metal a look. "And once again you fail," he said to him. "Kludd, you take Sniper up to where _she _used to sleep," Mecha commanded. Kludd understood. "Yes, Mecha," he saluted, grabbing Kludd and flying up to 'her' room. Metal tried to go after him, but Mecha prevented him from doing so. "LEAVE HIM ALONE, KLUDD!" Metal hollered.

**-'Her' Room-**

"Uh… No thanks, I'd rather be in a man's room!" Sniper excused, turning to leave. Kludd slammed the door, pointing his arm-laser at Sniper. "You're not going anywhere!" he reminded. Sniper quivered. Kludd snickered. "You're finished!" he teased. Sniper thought. "Hey, look, a distraction!" he pointed. Kludd looked. Sniper quickly ran past him and out of the room. "Come back here!" Kludd yelled. He followed Sniper with his booster. But somebody had grabbed Sniper and had warped out of the way with him.

Metal managed to get up to the room, Mecha following him. Arriving, Metal stopped. He recognised the room. "Callie's room…?" he asked, surprised. Mecha chuckled at the sight of him recognising the surrounding. "Yes, Metal," he began. "This is the room of the girl you couldn't protect." Metal looked at him angrily. "IT WASN'T MY FAULT!" he yelled. Mecha only laughed at his younger brother's weakness. "She died because of you," he continued. "SHE DIED BECAUSE SHE WANTED ME TO SAVE YOU! NOW SHUT UP!" Metal screamed, almost destroying his robot voice projector. Mecha glared at him. "You never spoke to her, but she died because she knew that YOU needed saving!" "She made a pointless sacrifice," Mecha sneered. "She always was a dense as you." Metal pounced at Mecha, punching him repeatedly in the face.

**-With Sniper-**

Sniper was somewhere dark. Nowhere in the base, but somewhere dark. He didn't know what he was doing here, or who brought him. But he would find out soon enough. "Where am I?" he asked. "Who brought me here?" "That would be me," a spine-chilling voice answered. Sniper suddenly went cold, shivering with fear. He was in a comfy bed, his wrists and ankles bound. He saw a figure in the darkness approaching him. Sniper began panting with fear. "Please… D-D-Don't kill me!" he begged. "I wasn't planning to," the figure answered. "Then let me go!" Sniper demanded. "I'm afraid not," the voice answered. Sniper looked up, seeing a pair of slit yellow irises looking down at him, as if they were glowing.

"If you're not going to kill me… then what are you going to do?" Sniper asked. "I'm going to transform you into a being like me," the figure replied. The figure placed one hand on Sniper's forehead and the other on his chest where his heart was. Sniper then felt darkness going into his mind and heart, and couldn't escape it.

**-Knothole-**

"It's been forever since I've seen Metal and Sniper," Skagui said. Ava and Nazo then came by him. "I agree," Nazo agreed. "Sniper was last seen at the Ancient Ruins, and I think Metal went to see him," "Well, they aren't there now," Skagui pointed out. "I reckon something bad may have happened to them both," "Then we'll look for them!" Ava heroically exclaimed. "That's right," Nazo recalled. "What's right?" Ava and Skagui both asked. "I can track them down with my cyborg eye," "Then do it!" Skagui rushed. Nazo scowled at him, but then tracked down Metal and Sniper. "I found Metal," he said. "But Sniper isn't on my tracker," "Then look him up!" Skagui snapped. Nazo grunted at Skagui and researched him.

_Metal Sniper the Hedgehog_

_Searching…_

_No Matches Found_

Nazo gasped lightly. "What?" Skagui questioned. "There are no matches found," Nazo answered. "Are you sure you spelled his name right?" Skagui asked. "Positive," Nazo replied. "I'll keep trying, anyway." Nazo kept on searching Sniper's other name, until find one. "Sniper the Hedgehog is the only one I found," he informed. "He looks just like Kludd – but his location is unknown," "It must be him," Skagui finalized. Nazo sighed. "Even if it is, we don't know where he is," he revealed. "Right now we just need to get Metal back."

**-With Sniper-**

Sniper had is eyes half-closed. All that he had in his mind now was hate. He wanted to kill all his friends, at the same time as not wanting to. He looked at the dark figure weakly. "You're probably wondering who I am, aren't you?" he asked. Sniper didn't answer. "My name is Mephiles," the figure answered. "Mephiles the Dark."


End file.
